


ghosts live on if they didnt truly die

by todotsukki



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Gang AU, M/M, it was meant to be bokuakakurotsukki but idk maybe if u squint but not really, kuroo is here for two seconds, no capital letters i am against capitalism, theres more characters but they arent rlly relevant, theres violence but i dont think its that graphic but like also idk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-04
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:21:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23476123
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/todotsukki/pseuds/todotsukki
Summary: “whose body...?” bokuto nodded his head back towards his desk and akaashi made his way over, stiffening up upon seeing the decapitated corpse. “you smeared komi’s blood all over my body?” he asked, voice leveled. the other panicked, trying to calm akaashi down“i had to! they needed to believe you’re going through it!”“...going through it?”“it’s slang!” akaashi sighed and rubbed at his head to ease his incoming headache, only to frown as his hand touching the coagulated blood.
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	ghosts live on if they didnt truly die

**Author's Note:**

> no capital letters, sorry !! i wrote this for twitter originally and it was too much to go through everything and capitalize the things i needed to
> 
> ALSO sorry if you’re confused about anything! feel free to ask what questions you might have, but i wrote it on a whim

‘konohas dead’, bokuto grieves, frowning. he was one of the strongest people in their gang (second only to bokuto himself) so it was a shock to hear that he’d been killed— by an outsider no less. a traitor or a spy. the black-and-white haired man slumped over his desk, coming in on himself. if konoha was dead, it must have been someone close enough to him that could make him drop his guard... but that raises the question: how long has this traitor been integrated in their system? if it were konoha, they must have been here at least two years... unless they were just very strong. if so, he had to be careful.

his eye twitches when the vent above him creaks slightly, but he makes no other indication that he noticed. hes aware of the shadow looming over him— it must be the killer. as much as bokuto wants to leap into action, he has to be smart about this. the killer already killed konoha, no doubt feeling prideful that they’d even managed such a feat. they’re bound to be sloppy from arrogance, so he waits for the other to strike first. he has to time it just right...

now!

the stranger leaps down from the vent, knife pointed straight into bokuto, but he’s faster than them. the gang leader leaps to his left and immediately slams his foot over the person’s head harshly. the knife falls out of their hand from impact and bokuto uses their shock to grab them by their neck, choking them slightly. he frowned deeply as he got a better look at their face— haruki komi. bokuto remembers the soft look on konoha’s face as he recounted his days with the traitor. he remembers konoha confessing that he fell in love with komi just months ago. and now... he’s dead because of the same man. his grip tightens.

“you’re the one who killed konoha,” he states, glaring coldly. komi’s hands claw feebly at his own, trying to loosen the grip at least a little bit. “you better have some damn good reasoning as to why you chose to kill him of all people.” the traitor gagged, unable to breathe. bokuto applied a small amount of pressure onto the front of his neck and he’s coughing, shaking his head as best as he could

“i’ll tell you! please dont kill me!” bokuto lets go of his grip, watching them fall onto the ground and coughing due to the lack of oxygen. for emphasis on how severe the situation really was, bokuto pulled out his own knife. “m-my name is haruki komi. date tech sent me here to gather information. they thought that i was becoming complacent and disloyal, so they gave me a new mission to kill you.”

“what about konoha,” he interrupted, flashing the blade. he readjusted his grip, making it fit perfectly in his hand.

“he-... i was going to leave him, truly. he wasnt even apart of the mission, but... one day, he caught me sending information to another person. suddenly he was my target. i didnt want to kill him! i swear!!” bokuto threw the knife, landing it into their stomach

“but you killed him anyways,” he reminded, moving the knife with his foot roughly. komi screamed in pain, screeching due to the haphazard way bokuto was handling the knife. “you said you were swapping information? how many spies came with you?”

“t-t-three! i don’t know! it was just me and another person when i started here. i know takehito recently was relocated here, but i dont know why!” takehito? bokuto frowned at the mention of his name. that’s the spy he sent to gather intel on date tech

“who are the others?” komi looked startled

“i-i don’t know! really!”

“then you are of no use to me.” bokuto roughly grabs the knife again and cleanly cuts off the other’s head. warm blood stains his hands as he watches the body slowly bleed out.  
the black-and-white haired man scowls at the new questions forming in his head by the second. what does date tech want with them? theyve never had trouble before, but he cant say hes surprised by the lack of trust. after all, he sent his own spies over there as well.

##

when akaashi walks into bokuto’s office, the first thing he notices is the smell of fresh blood. he immediately panics- first konoha and now bokuto?? who was strong enough to take out their strongest members? a scream escapes his mouth once his eyes land on the bloodied sight of his partner’s body. blood pooled around his stomach and there was quite a lot around his head as well. both of his hands were bloodied and bruised, as if he fought against the attacker with bare fists. akaashi didnt have time to think about that. the scream carried out into the halls, attracting the attention of wandering members

“bokuto-san!” they hear a startled voice yell. three rookies cautiously walk into the office to see what was going on, only to gasp when they saw the scene in front of them. their leader laid dead, blood quite literally everywhere as the usually stoic second in command was crying and close to hysterics, clinging onto the dead body as if his life depended on it

“akaashi?” one of them asked, stepping closer to the two 

“dont get closer!” akaashi instructed, clenching bokutos body tighter. “g-gather everyone in the main room! whoever isnt in there in twenty minutes will be killed immediately following the meeting!”  
the rookies scrambled out of the office, shutting the door behind them. akaashi pressed his head onto bokutos chest, crying into it, when a hand caressed his face, wiping off the tears yet simultaneously smearing something else onto his face. he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and made a noise once realizing who could have done it

“man, i should fake my death more often if it makes you show that you care about me”

“b-bokuto-san...?”

“hey, keiji,” he grins, sitting up. hands grip at akaashis shoulder and raises him up, only for him to shove bokuto away

“what— but you—"

“it’s a long story. here, put some of this blood in your hands.”

“is this not your blood?!”

“oh! and you have to dishevel your hair- “

“dont you dare get blood in m- “

“aaand done! okay!” bokuto smeared some blood on his shirt on his chest. “now here’s whats going to happen. you’re going to redirect All of the anger you have on me onto those poor people waiting in the main room. youre going to tell everyone that im dead. killed. there’s a traitor in the ranks and if anyone knows anything, speak up. there should be about three other traitors in the ranks, but four Should be named. if you do not get four, injure takehito. injure him, not kill okay? that should get the others to start speaking. you need to look sad, too. but also, angry. i’ll explain everything right when you finish, but for now act like their new leader. you are the new gang leader whether they like it or not. got it?”

“but—"

“you have to go! tell them now!”

##

“bokuto-san is dead,” he announces. the room immediately stills at the sound of his voice. the entire room looks up to where akaashi stands, on top a small podium that bokuto insisted on to make his speeches more dramatic. now that akaashi stands on top of it, it seems gloomy. “as you all may have heard, konoha-san is dead as well. there’s a traitor in our ranks.” his eyes steel onto sarukui, who stiffens at his gaze. he’s had his suspicions on who might be a traitor for a while now... months before konoha died. sarukui had too much starting potential at the beginning of being here- slipping up occasionally, but akaashi can pick even the most subtle emotions in people’s eyes. his eyes held nothing but hatred anytime he spoke to anyone other than three people.  
“perhaps multiple, but i only know of one. if you have any information, speak up now or else consequences will be far worse than what the traitor goes through.” immediately, a small girl stepped out of the crowd. haruka minami, akaashi remembers.

“i-i dont know if it’s relevant or not, but komi is missing,” she admitted. he watched as a taller, brown haired man’s fist clench at the mention of komi’s name

“all absences from this meeting have been counted for,” he replies. haruka shakes her head at it, causing him to raise an eyebrow

“i mean, h... he’s been missing for a week now, disappeared right after konoha-san d.... died. im sorry for not bringing it up sooner!” akaashi frowned, in thought. now that she mentioned it, he had noticed komi’s lack of presence in the following days but was so caught up in grief for a friend that he hadnt noticed. not to mention... sarukui and komi were quite close. had he been right in suspecting sarukui?

“thank you for bringing it to my attention.” he smiled softly at her, causing her to sigh in relief. “anyone else want to confess anything suspicious? i have all day.” his eyes scanned over the crowd again, analyzing their reactions

“how do we know bokuto-san is dead?” a rookie asks instead. akaashi immediately finds him and sends a cold, intense glare towards him

“would you care to elaborate on that?” the other gulped, feeling chills down his spine

“well, i just- i mean...”

“it’s as he says!” another voice calls out. “you’re acting too calm for him to be dead!”

“yeah!” a chorus of voices spoke out. akaashi stayed silent

“and why are *you* the person in charge suddenly? Suzumeda-san has been here longer than you have!”

“washio as well! and he’s way stronger than you!”

“i’m really not—“

suddenly a chorus of voices started shouting, fighting with each other and arguing against akaashi. he took a deep breath, quelling the oncoming headache. after a moment, he took out a gun and shot the person who spoke first in the leg, hitting him perfectly despite being in a crowd of people. it effectively shut everyone up

“you claim that im too calm for bokuto-san to truly be dead,” he repeats, voice still— almost too still. everyone stepped away from the person who had mentioned it, not wanting to get harmed. “how would you like me to act? As the traitor still runs loose in our ranks? in the past month, 15 missions have been compromised, konoha-san has been killed, and now bokuto-san bled out in his office, alone, while i briefed several people on their new mission. this is not a time to grieve for my loss. who knows when the traitor will strike next?” there was silence as they took in his words.  
“based on attendance alone, i’d say komi is the traitor. and he’s probably plotting someone else’s death as we waste our time, arguing over something as mundane as why i, bokuto-san’s right-hand man, should be the one who succeeds bokuto-san. i: the one who keeps track of injuries, supplies, medical issues, mission failures and successes, trades, relations among the other gangs, and so forth. if any of you would like to replace me, then by all means, go for it. i would be more than willing to give you this spot. but, seeing as no one except haruka has said anything of relevance, i take your words Very lightly.” he cocked the gun and pointed it towards sarukui. “so i ask once again: does anyone know anything about who the traitors are? because i will not ask again and if i find out that Any of you have kept information from me, i can assure you that you wish you were the traitor instead of just someone withholding information from me.”

##

once all of the suspects of who the traitor was were confined in the cells below, akaashi let go of a breath he wasn’t aware he was holding in. there were too many risks in just killing all of them- some of them could be innocent while others could be good actors. there was also the risk of spies who Weren’t caught and still roaming around in the halls. one thing’s for sure: he needed to dispose of all the rats immediately and quickly before they report back to wherever they came from. 

but for now, bokuto-san is waiting for him.

he frowned at the thought of him. what was bokuto planning by faking his own death? surely, he knows that it would only provide more panic to those who was already deeply affect by konoha’s death. now their beacon of light, the man who always knew what to say to cheer anyone up, was dead when they needed him the most. 

a hand on his shoulder pulled him out of his musings, forcing him to look up. washio had an apologetic smile on his face and akaashi nodded for him to speak

“sorry about the outburst that happened,” he apologized, rubbing the back of his neck. “i didnt know they’d say that. i dont doubt you’ll be an excellent leader for us.” akaashi managed to smile a bit at his apology and stood up again.

“dont worry about it. it wasn’t your fault,” akaashi replied. “bokuto-san really left too early, though... im afraid im not ready to lead, but maybe you could tell that from what just happened.”

“nonsense! you managed it the best as you could, and that’s all that matters.” the older reassured. “and if anyone questions your leadership again, they’ll have to speak to me about it first!”

“im grateful.” washio patted him on the arm again and left akaashi to his thoughts. right... bokuto-san is waiting. he’s going to wish he died after pulling that stunt on akaashi.

when he entered bokuto’s office again, he locked the door and scanned the room. nothing seemed completely different, but he couldn’t be so sure

“i checked every corner, plant, loose tile, ceiling panel, and wallpaper,” bokuto said suddenly, startling him in the process. “there were nine bugs total, and two on their body.”

“whose body...?” bokuto nodded his head back towards his desk and akaashi made his way over, stiffening up upon seeing the decapitated corpse. “you smeared komi’s blood all over my body?” he asked, voice leveled. the other panicked, trying to calm akaashi down

“i had to! they needed to believe you’re going through it!”

“...going through it?”

“it’s slang!” akaashi sighed and rubbed at his head to ease his incoming headache, only to frown as his hand touching the coagulated blood.

“never mind all that. youre explaining everything right here and right now. what are you even gaining from faking your own death?” the question put a smile on bokuto’s face- the one that signifies that bokuto had a plan he’d been thinking about for a while.

“we keep my death under wraps for a while,” he started, taking out papers from his desk. “for months, maybe about three, you play the role of the new leader. go to the meetings i would go to, tell them what you think blah blah blah.” he points to a sheet of paper, detailing what meetings usually consist of and how events usually go down. akaashi can’t help but to feel impressed by the amount of effort he put in such a heinous plan.  
“toward every fifteenth of the month, act more drawn in. colder, maybe even sad. get the gangs to question why you get like this on every fifteenth. then, we’ll have a funeral. invitations will go out and that’s when you’ll announce that i died today. then, as everyone is distracted by your eulogy, ill switch bodies with a puppet to get incinerated. it shouldn’t take more than a couple of minutes, but we can’t be certain. if something goes wrong, and i’m not able to trade places, i’ll have a black tie. if it’s a white tie, don’t hesitate to burn it.”

“hold on. this is an absurdly complicated plan, bokuto-san. you still havent explained why we’re doing all this yet.”

“oh! well, since we captured their traitors, they won’t get any information back. they’ll either assume im still alive and worried about their spies or that i’ve died and you’re taking over. no matter the situation, all traitors are dying. date tech will be forced to act out of panic. in the midst of it, ill slip in their ranks and make them pay for laying a hand on konoha and breaking his heart in the process.” it seemed solid enough for a plan, however something still bothered the black haired man.

“...why are you in the casket? wouldn’t it just be safer to have you attend the funeral?” bokuto grinned and collected the paper again, handing the stack to akaashi

“because i want to hear what they’ll say to me once i actually die, duh!!”

##

kuroo accompanied akaashi all throughout the week leading up to bokuto’s funeral. tsukishima was there as much as he could be, but he had his own gang to take care of, after all. akaashi understands well enough, seeing that they were both leaders of gangs

akaashi, to be blunt, looked like shit. his hair was constantly messy, getting more tangled and unkempt as the days went on. his eyes were constantly bloodshot and sullen, and his skin looked paler than usual. he wouldn’t eat, and kuroo was starting to get concerned for akaashi’s wellbeing.

kuroo spends nights at his shared house with bokuto (now it’s just his) in order to provide support, though. occasionally, he’d wake up throughout the night and hear the heart wrenching sound of akaashi sobbing. sometimes if kuroo listened close enough, he’d hear akaashi calling out to bokuto. he couldn’t blame the other— akaashi was the closest to bokuto, being in the same gang and all. kuroo couldn’t help feeling bitter about it.

he warned bokuto. over and over again, to be careful about making too many enemies. and now he was dead- supposedly. he didn’t want to doubt akaashi’s feelings, but nothing lined up! bokuto and he had a pact to tell the other about any dangerous situation that they’d enter before going through

it didn’t make sense, because the last thing bokuto sent him was a single text:  
“see you in five months”

it was ominous enough, but then he got the funeral invitation in the mail. things started to piece together, but he could figure out what the Fuck was going on at all. it was obvious that this was all planned- that bokuto wanted him to know Something. it frustrated kuroo to no ends, not knowing what bokuto meant. 

the day came for bokuto’s funeral. he had to physically drag akaashi into the bathroom and force him to take a shower. as akaashi got ready, kuroo decided to lay out his clothes for him. it was then that he noticed bokuto’s scent was still lingering in the air— a scent that should have disappeared by now. he frowned in thought when a wet hand on his shoulder pulled him out of his thoughts.

“kuroo-san? are you okay?” akaashi asked, worried. kuroo blinked mouth unable to move. he cleared his throat and nodded, forcing himself to speak

“yeah!” he confirmed, handing whatever article of clothes was in his hand over to the other as he dashed out of the room. everything started to click— at least for bokuto’s story. if he’s right about his theory, why would akaashi be crying so much?  
theres no time for that right now. he can ask akaashi once the ceremony is over.

##

kuroo sees tsukishima near the wall, talking to a freckled brunette that occasionally rubbed his arm in comfort. there was also a lot of more other people, no doubt from various gangs. he felt out of place, being the- seemingly- only person on the police force in attendance. thankfully, kenma shows up not much later, accompanied by yaku morisuke and, surprisingly, hinata. he nods them over and kenma comes over, immediately pulling him into a hug. kuroo hugged them back, pressing his face into their hair. he feels his shirt becoming slightly damp, but he doesn't mention it out loud.

"sorry for your loss," they mumble, pulling apart. kuroo sends kenma a sad smile and shakes his head.

"thank you, but you should tell akaashi that instead... he's loss... more than i have." the blond frowned at the statement

"just because he was closer doesn't mean your loss is less important," they counter, squeezing kuroo's arm in reassurance. "i'll talk to akaashi now. sorry again." the black-haired man let out a sigh as he watched kenma make their way to akaashi, watching as akaashi embraces the smaller gang leader.

"having fun?" a voice asks, startling him from his thoughts. kuroo spun around to see tsukishima standing before him. the rims of his eyes were red, and his cheeks looked more flushed than usual.

"if you could call it that," he shrugs, forcing a grin on his face. the blond makes a noise in acknowledgement and he turns to the coffin. he paused for a moment.  
"will you come with me to, uh, talk to him? send him off i suppose?” the blond looked surprised, eyes widening slightly, but agreed, nodding his head.

“sure,” tsukishima responded, taking his hand into his own. the two make their way over, stopping in front of the body. kuroo hears the other suck in a breath beside him.  
"god, he looks... fuck."

"it looks like he's just asleep," he agrees. he reaches in the casket to touch his face, but tsukishima stops him, grabbing the hand with his free one.

"don't touch him," the blond says, voice slightly distressed. "you'll bother him."

"...right. sorry, i just..." he retracts his hand and looks into the coffin, feigning a hurt expression. “sorry.” tsukishima hesitantly wrapped his arm around the other, leaning his head in his shoulder.

“i cant believe his really dead,” tsukishima states, voice breaking. “i mean, he was so young and... and...“ kuroo feels the blonde slump over and small trembles rack his body as kuroo stands still, embracing tsukishima from the side. a small sob escapes the others lips and the blonde uses his free hand to wipe away his tears. “sorry, i just— i’ll leave you alone for now,” he says, slipping away. “it looks like you want to be alone with him for a bit anyways.” kuroo didn’t move or reply back, not trusting himself to speak.

he waited a moment or two before looking around, making sure no one was in hearing distance. once he was sure he was in the clear, he leaned into the casket.

“i know you’re alive, asshole,” kuroo says, watching for a reaction. he waits for a total of ten seconds of utter silence and everything felt stiller than usual— as if time had been frozen. suddenly, a grin breaks onto the supposed corpse’s body

“yeah, no shit,” the corpse responds, opening an eye. he’s met with a glare and bokuto scoots over. 

“you made tsukki cry,” he hissed, pointing accusingly towards him. bokuto pouts, nodding sadly. kuroo sighed, relaxing his posture. “you better have a hell of a reason why you’re faking your own death. i’m coming to your apartment tonight and i’m not leaving til you answer any and all questions i have, got it?” the black-and-white haired man nodded, closing his eyes again. for the umpteenth time, kuroo sighs. at least bokuto isnt actually dead, he laments, turning a ring he wore on his index finger. bokuto had given it to him in their third year of high school as a graduation gift. a hand on kuroo’s shoulder pulled him out of his thoughts, only for him to see akaashi looking worriedly towards him.

“are you alright, kuroo-san?” he gave akaashi an unamused look and nodded stiffly. 

“i know,” he said simply. the other looked at him with surprise, but understanding slowly flashed in his eyes as he caught on. a soft laugh escaped and akaashi offered him a small smile before walking away. it was time to speak the eulogy, kuroo supposed. 

he will get his answers soon enough. knowing that akaashi also knew bokuto was actually alive and well helped his nerves a lot, but it still angers him as he remembers nightly calls from tsukishima, a panicked voice asking if he’s still alive and well after every shift he has. he remembers kenma crying in front of him, in the middle of his office when they heard of the news. kenma didnt quite care that much about him, but hearing how such a kind spirited and powerful leader died broke them almost instantaneously. he listened to countless nights of akaashi crying out, bokuto’s name on the tip of his lips— which didnt add up, considering bokuto was still alive.

but for now, he walks through the funeral, giving his own speech of how he lost an amazing friend, but will press forward. for now, he watches as akaashi finishes up his speech and walks over to the corpse. he reaches into the casket and moves, as if he was fixing a tie. for now, kuroo accompanies akaashi by being one of the people who carries out bokuto’s casket. he accompanies akaashi when the casket is laid on top of the incinerator, beside tsukishima who clings onto his right arm as akaashi grips on his left. he’s there for akaashi when he passes out from potential heartbreak of seeing his partner going through the incinerator.

he knows bokuto isnt in there- why else would akaashi decide to close the lid?- but the implication that it Could Have actually been bokuto, that bokuto could have really died instead of this being an elaborate scheme, hurts his heart so much that he’s bawling, screaming to give bokuto back as the casket is pushed fully into the contraption. he screams his throat raw as he holds akaashis limp body in his arms and doesn’t even register when tsukishima joined the two of them onto the ground, sobbing in kuroo’s arms as the blonde shook akaashi awake.

he knows bokuto is alive, sneaking out into his car as they’re crying on the floor. he knows this. but kuroo cries for the thought of What-If. he cries. because this situation could have been real, instead of just a really shitty series of events that have been planned out since before he even knew bokuto was supposedly dead.

bokuto is alive. he’s alive and well.  
but it could change- very quickly if kuroo isn't paying attention


End file.
